National and State News-Friday, June 15th

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, Houston (AP) - Two Atlantis crew members hope to staple a loosened piece of thermal blanket back to the top of an engine pod today during a spacewalk. That should make it safe for the shuttle's return to Earth. Meanwhile, engineers continue to
troubleshoot computer problems on the orbiting space station.

UNDATED (AP) - The U-S military says five more American soldiers have died in Iraq. Three were killed in a bombing and a fourth by small arms fire. The fifth died in a non-combat-related incident. And the U-S-led coalition in Afghanistan says one of its troops has died in fighting there.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Army says it's going to hire at least 25 percent more psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers to handle problems among troops returning from the Iraq war. Officials tell The Associated Press it will cost some 33 (m) million dollars to hire some 200 more mental health workers. They say as the war goes on, so does the need for more such professionals.

LISBON, Portugal (AP) - Police are sealing off a remote area of southern Portugal as they search for British four-year-old Madeleine McCann. Local media says they got an anonymous tip she might be buried there. Madeleine disappeared last month from a resort hotel after her parents went out to dinner, leaving her and her two-year-old twin siblings alone in their hotel room.

SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Car horns honked and some retailers stayed open through the night in San Antonio to celebrate their Spurs' N-B-A championship. San Antonio defeated the Cavaliers on Cleveland's home court last night, 83-82, to sweep the series in four games.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - The first major test for a broad smoking ban in Pennsylvania could come next week. That's when senators will have to decide whether the state's casinos and bars should go smoke-free, or let gamblers and drinkers light up inside. They'll also have to settle on a legal definition for cigar bars, which are likely to win an exemption. And they'll have to decide whether the government should be able to dictate the rules of a private club, like a country club or American Legion post. The bill, as it's written now, would ban smoking in just about
every public space and work place in Pennsylvania. Many amendments are expected to be debated.

LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) - A Lancaster County man accused of fatally beating and stabbing six family members is expected to plead guilty in the case today (Friday). But the prosecutor isn't specifying which charges Jesse Wise will plead guilty to. Assistant District Attorney Craig Stedman also won't say if it's part of a deal to spare the 22-year-old man from the death penalty. Wise was arrested in April 2006 on six counts of criminal homicide and faces a possible death sentence. The killings occurred at the home the family shared in Leola. Authorities allege that Wise confessed to killing his grandmother, two aunts, two cousins and an uncle inside their home. All six bodies were found in the basement.

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (AP) - A Marine from Canonsburg (Pennsylvania) facing murder charges says he killed three Iraqi men because he believed they were insurgents. Lance Corporal Justin Sharratt told a military court that at least two of the men were pointing machine guns at him. He said he kept on firing because he didn't know if they were wearing body armor. Sharratt's unsworn account came at his Article 32 investigation.
That's a hearing during which an investigating officer will review evidence to recommend whether Sharratt should be sent to a court-martial. Because Sharratt's statement was unsworn, he couldn't be cross-examined.

HOLLIDAYSBURG, Pa. (AP) - A Martinsburg man has been found guilty of breaking several of his 10-month-old daughter's bones and lacerating her liver. That verdict carries a minimum five-year prison sentence because a child was injured. Twenty-four-year-old Jesse James Hooper cried when the jury convicted him of aggravated assault, simple assault, endangering
the welfare of a child and recklessly endangering another person. He contends the baby was injured when he fell down the steps while carrying her. Police and doctors do not believe the child's injuries are consistent with a tumble down the steps. The baby suffered breaks in all major arm bones, a break in her left leg, a lacerated liver and a damaged pancreas.

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) - A 19-year-old graduate of Upper Merion High School is now facing criminal charges for what prosecutors say were terroristic threats. Thomas Musetti allegedly wrote over the Internet that Columbine High School shooter Eric Harris was his hero. He was arrested for trespassing when he showed up at his alma mater last week. Musetti has been in Norristown State Hospital since causing the scare. A Montgomery County prosecutor says charges were filed yesterday (Thursday) to make sure he doesn't get released from the
mental hospital.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - A station on the Philadelphia transit line popularly known as the "El" is closing tonight (Friday) so it can be demolished and rebuilt. The 46th Street Station on the Market-Frankford line should take about a year to rebuild. Shuttle buses will be used to ferry
passengers around during construction. On Monday morning, the newly rebuilt 60th Street Station is to open. The transit agency says the new stations boast large platforms,
escalators and elevators, and bright lighting inside and out.

ERIE, Pa. (AP) - After losing an engagement ring and two wedding bands in the Erie airport, the bridegroom finally got lucky: The prospective bride says she'll marry him. A week-long saga stretching from Erie to Venice, Italy came to a sweet end yesterday (Thursday) when a woman picked up the three rings her boyfriend, Mike Peterson, lost on June 8. David Bagnoni, public safety director at the Erie International Airport, says the woman picked up the rings and told him she plans to marry Peterson. A maintenance worker found the rings under an airport seat.
Peterson, who thought the rings had been stolen, realized they had been found when he read a story on the Internet about the jewelry recovered in the Erie airport.